Bodyguard's Love

Chapter 10

"Uh... Lucas ? What's this ?" Luana asked, confused and scared.

The princess and her bodyguard were near the training grounds. In front of them, stood a huge wolf with gray fur and black piercing eyes.

"Your Highness, I present to you Leo," Lucas said, stroking the animal's head gently.

The latter was the same height as his master. It had big paws, sharp claws and long canines.

"Leo ?" she repeated, confused.

"Yes. He's my pet. I found him in a mountain when I was on a mission, three years ago. At that time, he was still very small. But now, he's all grown up," he answered, smiling affectionately.

"Oh, I see..." the princess replied, still scared.

"Leo comes from a very rare breed of wolves. They are very powerful magical creatures. He's considered as an alpha in his pack. So he's one of the strongest and healthiest of his kind."

"It's fascinating..." she added, amazed.

"He'll be very useful for us to cross the forest. He's very agile and good at fighting. He's also very obedient. You can also climb on his back when you're tired of walking."

"W-What ?! W-We're going to have to ride on his back ?!" she asked, shocked.

"Yeah. He's going to help us move a lot faster like that," he replied nonchalantly.

"B-But… I-I..." she started hesitantly.

"Hm ? Don't tell me… Are you afraid of him ?" he asked gently.

After a little hesitation, Luana nodded softly, her cheeks red with embarrassment.

"Oh, I see…" he replied, smiling and patting Leo's head gently.

The latter began to walk slowly towards Luana, which made her startle and back up a few steps.

Arrived in front of her, the animal lowered his head, as if asking her to caress him.

"Looks like he wants you to stroke his head, Your Highness," Lucas remarked, smiling slightly.

"R-Really ? C-Can I ?" she asked nervously.

The young knight nodded at her, his smile widening.

The princess put her hand gently on the wolf's large head and caressed it. The latter whimpered softly like a little puppy, showing his joy and submission to her.

"It looks like he really likes you," Lucas remarked.

"It seems like he does, yeah," she laughed while scratching his jaw.

Leo moved closer to her and licked her cheek affectionately, making her giggle heartily.

Lucas, who saw the scene unfold before his eyes, felt that his feelings for the young princess were only deepening more and more. But he couldn't deny the fact that he was a little bit jealous of Leo.

'I've become completely delirious now. I'm getting jealous of my own pet. That's shameful,' he thought.

It was Luana's voice that brought him out of his thoughts.

"You know, Lucas... I find you and Leo to be very similar," she said, stroking the animal's neck.

"Similar ? How's that ?" he asked, confused.

"Well... You both seem cold and distant at first glance. When in truth, you are very kind, gentle and affectionate inside," she answered, her cheeks turning slightly pink.

Lucas felt that his heart was going to come out of his chest from how hard it was beating.

"Did I seem cold and distant to you the first time ?" he asked hesitantly.